Foreign investment in Vietnam is directly linked to the construction of tourism-related infrastructure, including exhibition and conference centers, hotels and resorts, airports, railways, roads and more.

There is also a lot of less obvious indirect investment associated with tourism programs or infrastructure.

These include language and tourism schools, museums and galleries, hospitals and insurance, IT and media services, markets and supermarkets, petroleum and energy producers – all depend on the tourism industry.

One of the great advantages of this multipurpose sector is it occurs in metropolitan as well as rural areas.

It can bring money to people and places that few industries can reach.

Vietnam as a place to holiday

An abundance of tourism resources, major destinations, attractions and cultural events has put Vietnam on the tourist map in the region and the world.

Most important is the good international image and the strong market throughout Asia.

Vietnam is also favored for its political stability, lack of terrorism, and sustained economic growth.

Furthermore, the country is often portrayed as an interesting, emerging and exotic destination that is affordable and that travelers must enjoy before it's too late.

Nevertheless, it is probably the friendly smiles of the Vietnamese people that keep on winning the travelers' hearts.

Unfortunately though, the industry has not recognized the numerous issues that restrain growth in the short, medium and long term.

This is because the tourism product is a complex one which must satisfy different industrial sectors and markets.

Access is always the foundation of tourism development, and Vietnam has a limited number of quality roads, airports, railways and ports.

This situation disrupts access to the many destinations and their actual carrying capacity.

Flights are often fully booked months in advance but carrier competition is nonexistent and connecting flights are largely insufficient.

The number of quality roads or highways can't cope with demand and the quantity of 45-seat buses in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang and other places is still in short supply.

Existing railways and the speed of available trains, as well as services onboard, need to be improved, and projected development of railways will take many years.

Cruise ships are reasonably new and the number of large ships is still sporadic.

This is mostly due to the lack of leisure-travel ports available along the 3,260 km Vietnamese sea border.

In the Accommodation sector, the lack of quality hotels in the main cities brings room prices to levels that have never been seen before.

As a result, Vietnam is an expensive destination when compared with most of its neighbors.

The shortage of well trained staff with language skills adds to the problem.

But a greater risk is when operators and hoteliers refuse bookings year-round, due to lack of availability in main cities.

Furthermore, many hoteliers breach contracts or disrespect their own terms encouraging foreign tour operators to search for alternative destinations.

Attractions are what make a destination stand above others.

Vietnam has some interesting attractions to promote effectively to international visitors.

Most are located in Sa Pa, Hanoi, Ha Long, Hue, Hoi An, Da Lat, Nha Trang, HCMC, the Mekong Delta and Phu Quoc Island.

This rather small number of destinations/attractions confines product offerings and creates a situation where local (inbound) operators promote standard tours which cover the whole country in less than two weeks!

After seeing it all why should any one plan to return to Vietnam?

This condition also provokes a situation in which overcrowded sites negatively affect the tourist experience and perception of places.

Administration is probably one of the crucial issues which is most misunderstood in Vietnam and worldwide.

The current lack of cooperation between government and business makes policy making useless.

Examples include the very small budget that is given for the marketing campaigns of Vietnam abroad; the sometimes conflicting tourism master plan issued by each province; the complicated process to open a hotel; the unsatisfactory programs being offered to students; the bleak certificates provided to the tourism guides; the complicated and costly procedure for some visa applicants and the weakly enforced polices for security, health and safety regulation.

Tourism is one of the most versatile businesses, involving various public and private stake-holders from numerous sectors, so coordinated action is needed to ensure its sustained success.

Unfortunately, some tourism businesses are still trying to fix important problems, without understanding the implications of their actions.

The proper interactivity needed to succeed across the many sectors remains absent.

As the number of travelers to Vietnam keeps increasing, the pressure and problems will rise greatly.

If proper actions to cope with the increasing challenges and demands are not taken soon, the future of Vietnam as a tourism destination is uncertain!

Reported by Patrick Gaveau

(Vietnam Inbound Tour Operator Club Vice-President)

Source: Thanh nien.